The Role of Social Media in Public Consultations

Abstract

The public sector, as an important actor in the development of service quality, has mostly shown a superior approach to receiving feedback from service users. In the era of community-oriented government, many governments use different methods to receive feedback from people, including public consultations. However, the practice of traditional public consultations does not satisfy public needs due to the fast development of society. Since the widespread use of the internet, many governments publish their policies to receive public feedback. Due to these shortcomings and the significant place of policies in public life, policymakers pay more attention to improving public consultations to enhance public support, so the academic world also becomes involved in improving public consultation methods. From theoretical perspectives to practices, studies have tried to find a way to enhance the effectiveness of policy feedback. Different theoretical perspectives have been used to facilitate the improvement of public consultations, including structural theory, practical theory, network theory, etc. Social media, as an essential tool in the early 21st century for a new form of communication, has also been the focus of some studies. Social media plays a big role in forming public opinion and shaping attitudes, especially related to social and political issues. Moreover, as a bridge, social media can connect people with the government, making it easy for them to send feedback and support, but there are challenges in the practical application of social media in enhancing public feedback.

Keywords social media, public consultations, feedback mechanisms, service quality, community-oriented government, policy development, public opinion, theoretical perspectives